


That Girl

by heartofholtzbert



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, Princess Mechanic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-30
Updated: 2018-08-02
Packaged: 2019-06-19 00:39:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15498426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heartofholtzbert/pseuds/heartofholtzbert
Summary: Clarke Griffin studies art. Raven Reyes studies astrophysics. Their paths cross when Clarke has a one night stand with Finn Collins, unaware that Finn has a girlfriend.





	1. Chapter One

Clarke sat up and rubbed a hand along her bare leg. She was smiling; she couldn’t help it. Sunlight slanted in through the dorm window, shining on piles of books stacked on the floor. Books about Aristotle, Plato, Kant. Of course - he’d told her last night that he was a philosophy student. 

The rest of the dorm room was pretty standard; clothes strewn about, laptop on standby over on the desk, a timetable gleaming with yellow highlighter tacked up on the wall. The other bed in the room was pristine and unused; his roommate hadn’t arrived yet, wouldn’t until Sunday. 

Just then, he walked back into her line of sight with a towel tied around his waist. His hair was wet from the shower, tousled and dripping water onto his shoulders. He grinned at her and she smiled back while her heart stuttered. She cursed herself; it was too soon to develop feelings. Much too soon. It had only been a one night thing. After today, they would probably never see each other again. It was a big campus and they studied different things. Plus, there was something about Finn Collins that told Clarke he did this kind of thing a lot, with a lot of different girls. 

Not that she minded that. She was quite capable of having a one night stand and then moving on. But this time… something was different. She didn’t want to just get dressed and leave. She wanted to stay. She wanted to spend more time with him. 

Get a grip Clarke, she thought to herself. 

“You hungry?” Finn asked. 

“I could eat,” she said, crossing her legs in the bed. 

She thought he would offer her something he had lying around, but he surprised her. 

“There’s a nice little café about ten minutes from here,” he said casually. “If you want, we could go there and get some breakfast.”

“Yeah, sure,” she said, maybe a bit too quickly. 

He grinned again and ran a hand through his hair. She remembered doing the same last night, tangling her hands in it while they kissed. She felt a pang as she realised it would probably never happen again.

She swung her feet out of the bed and stretched, her spine making a series of satisfying cracks. Finn squatted down and picked up her bra from the floor, handing it to her. His crooked smile made her heart leap again, and she was suddenly conscious of the way he was looking at her, drinking in the sight of her. She fought back a blush and went to the bathroom to shower. 

***

They ordered pancakes. Finn’s were sweet, Clarke’s savoury. They sat at a table by the window. It was so small that they kept knocking knees under the table. The first two times it happened they apologised, and after that just exchanged a smile. 

“So,” Clarke said, cutting into her pancakes. “Where did you say you were from again?”

“It’s a small town,” Finn said, shrugging. “You wouldn’t have heard of it.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah.” He took a sip from his drink, keeping his eyes on her over the rim of the glass. “And I remember where you’re from. Do you miss it yet?”

“I’ve only been here three days,” she said. “Not long enough to miss it, I guess. I miss my mom though.”

She didn’t mean to say the last part. Why would he care? He was just making conversation. 

“What about your dad?” he asked. 

She lowered her knife and fork, her stomach aching as it always did when her father was mentioned. “He passed away,” she said quietly. “A year ago.”

“Oh, God.” Finn looked horrified. “I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have asked -”

“No, no, it’s okay,” she said. “It’s just… it’s still fresh. That’s why I applied to this college and not one closer to home. I just needed to get away from it. From everything.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she regretted it. Why the hell had she told him all that? She hadn’t even been honest with her mother about why she picked this college, yet here she was telling a guy she’d just had a one night stand with. She really needed to stop drinking and get some sleep. 

But she wasn’t drunk now. She almost wished she was. 

“I’m so sorry,” Finn said quietly. 

She was looking down at her food, but she looked up when she felt a warm hand on her own. Finn laced his fingers with hers and did not break eye contact. Their hands sat, interlinked, on the table between them. Clarke’s heart beat unevenly in her chest. 

“Is everything okay for you two?” a waitress asked in a loud, chirpy voice. 

Clarke jumped and tried to pull her hand back, but Finn held onto it firmly. 

“Everything’s fine, thank you,” he said to the waitress, barely turning his head. 

While he said it, he rubbed Clarke’s thumb with his own. It was a small gesture, but for some reason it made Clarke feel safer and more comforted than she had in a long time. 

She quickly steered the conversation into easier territory, and they stayed in the café until a big group of older students walked in and it became too loud. Finn offered to walk her back to her dorm and she accepted, for lack of a reason not to. 

They said goodbye at the door to her building. She didn’t know what to do; did she kiss him? On the mouth? On the cheek? He didn’t seem sure either. They ended up parting with an awkward hug. When they drew apart, he hesitated for a moment and she thought he was going to ask for her number, her Facebook, her Twitter, anything. But he only gave a little two-fingered wave and a smile, then he was walking away. 

And watching his retreating back, Clarke cursed herself again. Because against all her better judgement, she definitely had feelings for Finn Collins.


	2. Chapter Two

The next day was Saturday, and Clarke had plans. Plans that did not include Finn Collins in any way. But try as she might, she couldn’t get him out of her head. 

So instead of going for a walk around the campus and trying to meet people who would be in her class, as she had originally planned to do, she sat on the floor in her dorm room, with her back against the wall, and tried to sketch Finn. She started with the main features of his face and tried to flesh out the drawing from there. The curve of his nose, the wideness of his eyes. She drew and rubbed out, drew and rubbed out. It wasn’t good enough. 

She closed her sketchpad and tossed it away from her in frustration. It was always a bad sign when even her art couldn’t cure her restlessness. Why hadn’t she asked for Finn’s number? She had never been one to stop herself from going after what she wanted. She had asked out her first girlfriend within two hours of meeting her. 

Where sketching had failed, maybe physical exercise wouldn’t. Clarke threw on a jacket and pulled on her running shoes. She took the stairs too fast, her hand flying along the handrail. She opened the door of the building, her body already tensed to break into a jog. And there, standing outside, hands in his pockets, was Finn.

She stopped short. Finn looked immensely relieved - and also a little embarrassed - to see her. 

“Hey,” he said. “I didn’t know which room was yours and I didn’t wanna knock on all the doors so…”

“So you were waiting out here like a creep?” Clarke teased, raising one eyebrow. 

She tried not to let on how happy she was to see him, but it was pretty damn hard.

“That’s one perspective,” Finn said.

“Oh yeah? What’s the other one?”

“The other one,” Finn said, the corner of his mouth quirking up into an arrogant grin, “is that I just made a very romantic gesture and you’re swooning internally as we speak.”

“I don’t swoon,” Clarke said, in her huskiest voice. 

“No?” Finn took a step closer. Clarke tilted her chin up to look at him. Their noses were almost touching. “Are you sure?”

“Hundred percent,” Clarke said. 

“I wanted to see you,” he said, suddenly serious. She could feel his breath on her face. 

“Next time, call, don’t stalk,” she said, smirking. 

He raised his eyebrows. “Next time?”

She tried to backtrack. “I just mean -”

But he interrupted her. “Today’s the last day I have a room to myself.”

It wasn’t a question, but it was.

“Oh really?” Clarke said, her caution disappearing and boldness taking its place. “Well then, let’s not let it go to waste.”

***

“Hey, why are you getting dressed?” Finn complained.

Clarke was sitting on the edge of Finn’s bed, tugging her shirt on over her head. He was still lying back, sweat shining along his forehead. The sheets were mussed and twisted. It had been even better than the first time. 

“I’m hungry,” Clarke said. “There’s a vending machine downstairs, right?”

“Yeah,” Finn said. 

Clarke stood up and wriggled into her jeans. “Cool. I’ll be back in a sec.”

“You’re not sneaking away, are you?” Finn teased. 

“Of course not,” Clarke said, with a dramatic hand on her chest. “Not when you know where I live.”

Finn laughed.

Clarke closed the door behind her and headed downstairs. She was in front of the vending machine, trying to figure out what she could afford, when she heard the voice.

“Hey, excuse me, Blondie.”

Clarke turned around. The voice belonged to a young woman. She looked maybe nineteen or twenty at most. And she was the most beautiful girl Clarke had ever seen. Her brown skin was smooth and flawless, her hair up in a ponytail that drew attention to her perfect face. Wide brown eyes. Full lips. She was wearing a red bomber jacket and tight black jeans. Clarke could only stare. 

“You speak English?” the other girl asked, after a moment. 

“Yeah,” Clarke said quickly. “Sorry, I just - yeah, I do.”

“I’m looking for someone,” the other girl said. “I think his dorm is in this building but I’m not sure which one it is. Can you help me out?”

“Oh,” Clarke said. “I’m actually new here, so I don’t really know people yet. Sorry. Have you tried texting him?”

“He doesn’t know I’m coming,” the other girl said, with some satisfaction. “It’s a surprise.”

“Oh. Cool,” Clarke said. It took a lot to intimidate her, and this girl did. “Well, like I said, I’m new here so -”

“He’s new here too!” the girl said. “He’s starting philosophy this year.”

It was too much of a coincidence, Clarke thought. But still, she said, “His name’s not Finn by any chance, is it?”

“Yeah!” the girl said, her eyes lighting up. “So you do know him.”

“A little,” Clarke said hesitantly. 

She had a sinking feeling in her stomach that she could not explain. As if her body was trying to warn her about something. 

“So is he a… friend?” Clarke asked tentatively. 

“Nah.” The girl grinned and stuffed her hands in her pockets. “He’s my boyfriend.”


End file.
